I made an observation of the Lagoon Nebula (M8, NGC 6523) in Sagittarius on October 18, 2009 (00:00 U.T) using my 8-inch (20-cm) F/9 Klevtsov-Cassegrain at 48x. The nebula appeared a pale pastel pink, especially surrounding 9 Sagittari (HIP 88469). The open cluster NGC 6530 appeared to sparkle in the field. This observation was one of the finest that I have ever enjoyed using a moderate-aperture instrument.

Your careful sketch-work has definitely captured the Lagoon nebula very well, Carlos. Thank you for sharing it! I especially enjoy the brightness of your sketch. It captures how elusive the broader nebulosity of this nebula (and most nebulae) appears through the eyepiece. I find it difficult to attain such faint "shading", so I admire your ability to capture it so well.

Really nice CS4 - I like the mistiness feel and losing a white frame makes it easier to just sort of "sink in" to the sketch. I was not able to see any of this nebulosity when I looked earlier this year from my site - just saw the cluster. Its so frustrating to know its there but cannot see it. Must try and move to a darker site when this comes around next year!

Thank you or the compliments on my Lagoon Nebula (M8) observation. This is an impressive object to observe in the Summer (and even Fall) sky. Both the nebula and cluster were spectacular in the eyepiece field. The best of luck in your own observations.